Commentary
What if U.S. Supreme Court overturns landmark Roe vs. Wade?
Let’s look ahead. What if the landmark Roe v. Wade decision is gutted or overturned? My first thoughts go to my teen daughter, Caroline; my nieces, Haley and Isabelle; and all their girlfriends. The recent ideological shift on the U.S. Supreme Court has put many of us on high alert, ready for a fight we […]
Now in Washington, multimillionaire Rick Scott still out there hustling for more cold cash
No doubt you’ve been wondering whatever became of Rick Scott, the fellow who wrested the title of Worst Governor Ever from Sidney J. Catts soon after he was elected in 2010. Scott was last seen in Tallahassee shortly after the November midterms squealing like an outraged tapir when his lead over incumbent Florida senator Bill […]
Drug smuggling, organized crime and now, education: A statewide grand jury is a novel approach to keeping kids safe at school
Once upon a time a Florida governor decided to create a Statewide Grand Jury so the good guys could eliminate drug smuggling. That governor was Reubin Askew and we all know how that ended. Gov. Ron DeSantis wants a Statewide Grand Jury to deal with violence in public schools. It could well turn out to […]
An unbelievable odyssey: Trying to access court records, for free and on the spot, at your local courthouse
For many years, Florida’s public records law made it easy to look at court files – in person, at the courthouse or online. Not any more. The Circuit Clerks who guard this gate have imposed some ridiculous restrictions that can substantially delay access to lawsuits and make it very costly to see one. You can discover […]
It’s time to revive Florida’s African American History Task Force
Dear Florida Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran: First, congrats on the gig. As you are by now aware, the job of education commissioner is far more than a title, paycheck and political steppingstone after eight years in the Florida Legislature. Your work – the decisions you make, the policies you push — impacts an estimated 2.7 […]
Good luck with your plan to control Florida women, dude
Women are becoming CEOs, joining the military, voting, running for office, walking around like they’re as good as a dude! And some men just can’t take it, dang feminists busting their nads. Their response is to concoct ever more absurd ways to control women’s bodies. Florida Rep. Mike Hill of Pensacola has come up with […]
Messing with Amendment 4 — automatic voting rights for felons — is a “political minefield”
On Tuesday, January 8, we registered 105 Florida felons who had served their sentences to vote at the Leon County Supervisor of Elections office in Tallahassee. It was a day when these felons became returning citizens. Damn, it felt good! Our historic day was due to Florida Constitutional Amendment 4, which was approved by 64 […]
Thanks but no thanks, Rick Scott
On the same night Donald Trump got on national television to spew a pack of nonsense about the border “crisis,” Florida’s ultimate bottom-feeder, Rick Scott, threw a self-congratulatory “Sunshine Ball.” In Washington, D.C. In the middle of a government shut-down. Tickets, appropriately named after credit cards, ranged from $100,000 “Platinum,” down to “Bronze,” though for […]
Fighting for a future that doesn’t suck
When Florida’s newly elected Governor Ron DeSantis and Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried take office tomorrow, one group of young Floridians will be keenly interested. They have a court case against Florida’s governor, the state Department of Environmental Protection, the Florida Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services, the Public Service Commission (which sets state energy policies […]
Dumbing down Florida education
Florida Republicans have once again demonstrated their contempt for education by making former House Speaker Richard Corcoran Commissioner of Education. It’s not merely that he’s grossly unqualified, he’s hell bent on wrecking our public schools. Just as Donald Trump has no experience telling the truth, Corcoran has no experience in education – unlike former commissioner […]
In their own words: What these South Florida high school shooting survivors want you to know
Compiled by teacher Jeff Foster and written by Isabel, 17; Jacyln, 18; Jacob, 18; Jenny, 18; Marcus, 17; Olivia, 18; and Shai, 17 – Students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Parkland, Florida. This past Valentine’s Day, I was lucky enough to escape – along with 30 of my students – the senseless massacre that […]
We meant what we voted
Straight out of the Florida Department of Oh-No-You-Didn’t, Governor-elect Ron DeSantis and other Republican politicians are now claiming they need to “implement” the ballot measure that citizens approved to automatically restore voting rights to felons who have paid their debts to society. DeSantis and Florida Senate President Bill Galvano, among others, ignore that we already […]